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Gardening

Joys of Winter

(833 Posts)
bagitha Tue 11-Oct-11 08:42:13

Flock of Redpolls in the silver birch tree outside my bedroom window. smile

Butternut Tue 22-Nov-11 17:38:50

It always amazes me how much liquid there is in a mug of tea! But apart from that, hope you've had the weatherman's gentle little day. smile

jingl Tue 22-Nov-11 17:37:27

I will try and find a poem about it, but can't promise anything.

jingl Tue 22-Nov-11 17:35:23

I will go and clear it all up in a minute.

Really I will.

jingl Tue 22-Nov-11 17:34:55

It's been a "gentle little day" here (as the weatherman says).

Or it was until I knocked my mug of tea over, over the kitchen work surface, cupboards, floor, cookery books, and husbands's new diary! hmm

Butternut Tue 22-Nov-11 17:29:48

I looked up into the sky this evening,
When closing the shutters
And was struck by the cloud scape
- a Grey Plover's wing
Diagonally angled against
A smoky-gold, purple wedge of sky
Split with the palest pink I'd ever seen
And thought of strength and delicacy,
And how nature holds both so well.

bagitha Tue 22-Nov-11 16:13:59

Waving's a Lancashire thing too, super, and I love it. Also love your word painting. smile

Butternut Tue 22-Nov-11 16:08:58

supernana - a beautifully serene scene. smile

supernana Tue 22-Nov-11 13:22:34

Bagitha waving is a very Scottish thing, methinks.

The nip in the air is refreshing
And the low-slung November sun
Casts long graceful shadows
Over a landscape of spicey hues.
As we passed the loch
The reflections were perfect in the glassy water -
A wee white croft
Tall pines and hills covered in burnished bracken.
In Tarbert harbour
Boats of many colours
Seem to bleed their images into the dark depths.
A pair of pure white swans
Drift effortlessly between the bobbing bouys.
Back home now
And the islands of the inner Hebrides
Stand strong against a pastel sky
Streaked with feathered cloud.

Butternut Tue 22-Nov-11 10:48:26

Uplifting indeed, bagitha - Isn't it lovely when a day presents a spring in your step. smile

bagitha Tue 22-Nov-11 10:12:17

The overnight minimum temperature fell by five degrees
From what it has been for a while.
We woke to a cloudless sky and a fresh nip in the air.
Uplifting.
Even the mountains seemed to think so,
Standing out bold and dark
Against the shimmering sea and sky.
The workmen fixing the village's electricity supply line
(they've been at it for weeks)
Seemed chirpier too.
And I lost count, again, of the number of car drivers
Who waved as they passed us on our walk.

Butternut Mon 21-Nov-11 17:18:54

Ahh - this thread is so good to come home to!

Dancing with lorries from
Spain, Portugal, Germany
Twirling around ...... and around
Roundabouts
Figuring out nonsensical signing
Missed that turning!

The mad dash, the hunt for home
Concentrates the mind
Thankful that it's not wet, cold.
Home to dusk, gentle skies
and a lit back door.

supernana Mon 21-Nov-11 13:19:35

bagitha Perfect colour combination for one of your inspired temaris.smile

bagitha Mon 21-Nov-11 13:15:40

And now a sun is peeping through the deep misty clouds
And shining on the fallen cherry leaves:
Yellows, golds, oranges, reds —
Inspiration for another temari smile.

bagitha Mon 21-Nov-11 12:59:58

Thank you for sharing that, super! It makes me want to come and see for myself!

supernana Mon 21-Nov-11 12:34:14

Beautiful, Bagitha

Today the silver eye of November's sun
Peers between meringue-like cloud of pearly grey and sugar pink.
Below - the laser eye of a sparrow hawk seeks his quarry
And with sudden darting flight
Scatters a starburst of finch.
The yellow eyes of feral cat
Open lazily
Track for a brief moment the flurry of activity
And then half close
Drifting back into the dream world from which he has stirred.
Liquid brown eyes of Sikka deer
Watch warily from under the ancient trees.
Lamp-like glassy eyes of rabbit stare stonily into space
Velvet ears twitch and twist and turn...
I see the ordinary and everday happenings around me
And share with you in word pictures.

bagitha Mon 21-Nov-11 11:27:00

I walked to school and back without getting wet today
But now it is raining hard so I'll have a day off from outdoor work —
Currently, scraping moss and well rotted leaf mould off our drive
Heaving it in the wheelbarrow up the hill that is our garden
And dumping it on the flowerbed.
Instead I will work indoors and then sit down to try my hand again
At hito hude gake!

elderflower1 Sun 20-Nov-11 20:56:35

[Love this thread]

Carol Sun 20-Nov-11 18:34:25

The words on here are exquisite. I wish there was a 'like' or 'love' button to click so we could express our appreciation without getting in the way of the flow of beautiful verse thanks

bagitha Sun 20-Nov-11 16:58:46

I love the scene of black, greys and reds with a little silver and white that your words evoke, super.

Butternut Sun 20-Nov-11 16:15:15

,,,,,,,,'hugs the shores of Jura' - lovely.

supernana Sun 20-Nov-11 12:53:49

FlicketyB thanks for a comforting word picture.

In our garden the red-breasted robin
Prances around the glossy blackbird
And the rosey-breasted chaffinch
As they enjoy their daily feast of seed and nuts.
Big black feral cat basks in the pale sunshine
Just inches away
Neither cares for what the other is doing.
On the big grey rock
Not far from the shore
The white gull sits beside eight black cormorants.
It is their favourite meeting place.
A large grey seal flops on his rock
And watches with lazy eyes.
Red-billed black and white oyster catchers
Delve around the grey pebbles and sinewy black seaweed.
The black, white and red-funneled ferry from the Isle of Islay
Creates a pure white wake
Parting the silver sea that hugs the shores of Jura.

FlicketyB Sat 19-Nov-11 19:52:52

Raking up the leaves on a cold sunny winter afternoon.

Going back indoors afterwards lighting the wood burner and eating buttered crumpets and drinking tea in front of it.

Butternut Sat 19-Nov-11 13:46:45

Lovely supernana - still loving this thread. smile

supernana Sat 19-Nov-11 12:28:20

Butternut...smile

Pale sunlight peeps through the gauze-like cloud
It seeks the early gorse
And highlights each and every golden new-born bloom.
Hydrangeas of ox-blood red and deep dark aubergine
Nod their blowsy heads in approval.
The same sun filters through the spidery branches of the now bare willow
Beneath, bronze crisp bracken glows.
The wee burn bubbles as it cascades over glossy silvered stones
Creeping towards the beach
Where sits the Otter - on his favourite rock - ready to wash his silky coat
Before returning to his safe and private home.

bagitha Fri 18-Nov-11 20:50:41

Beautiful, butty. I can almost see it! My mind's eye loves the colours. grin